Neeson is the vodka of James Bond's martini

The most thrilling movie I've seen in a long time. Neeson is what we
would fear if James Bond went to hell and came back for revenge (I
doubt big budget Quantum of Solace will top this). I loved Jason
Bourne; but where Bourne is confused for half the movie, Neeson is
looking down a barrel of a pistol 3/4 of the time. In a three way spy
battle, I would put Neeson edging out Bourne, who would be a step ahead
of Bond.

Between the jaw-dropping action sequences was the subject matter of
international trafficking, which was pretty miserable to watch.
Although killing is wrong, death was never more satisfying to watch.

Probably the fastest 93 minutes of my life !

Wow - I had already read reviews of this movie, and with the writer
being one of my favourite directors, Luc Besson, I just had to go see
this movie as soon as possible...

I was not disappointed... I'm not sure if this was intentional but
there were no trailers before the movie, so being thrown strait into
the film unexpectedly with people whispering "is this it then ?" only
helping build up some initial tension and excitement.

The film starts nicely, but with overtones of spy thrillers like "Day
of the Jackal" coming to mind. Neeson seems a bit pityful at the start,
but soon overturns that impression with a taste of his handywork after
around ten minutes of the thriller.

Then, before you know it, it's over. 93 minutes, gone in a blur of
fighting, fear, chasing and excitement at serious pace. The artwork and
direction is nicely done, giving you the feeling of being the one
attacking and the chair squirming feeling of being the poor gits who
get annihilated in almost every way possible.

It was one of those films that I wanted to applause after the film, I
actually clapped about three times, but no-one joined in... too afraid
of being the only two people clapping I suppose...

Neeson was great, and I can't wait to see the movie many more times. I
only gave it 9 out of 10, as it was too short ! The film could have
been easily stretched to 2 hours in my opinion, with some more
development and intimacy with the characters. But I guess this may have
not made it so exciting... still, well worth the money to see this in
the big screen.

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574 out of 807 people found the following review useful:

Surprinsingly good - definitely must see

I'm still under the influence of this movie, so my comment is likely to
be superlative! I went to this movie, knowing that one of the writers
and the director were both French, and since I've seen some
not-so-impressive movies (almost fell asleep), i was really skeptical.

BUT this one proved to be a great action movie. The best movie to
compare with Taken is Hit-man. The idea is somewhat the same (lots of
action, shots, flying bullets etc) - though the motive for the actions
are not money. But the level of realism, the motivation of the
character, the cold blood which moves him on makes this flick a good
option to choose when selecting a movie.

Liam Neeson does a great performance, perfectly interpreting his role
of a former spy. As he says in one of his lines, he's "retired, but not
dead", having an opportunity to show everyone what he knows to do best.

The movie covers a hot topic too, kidnapping young women to force them
to prostitute, and all the business this involves. You get to see the
kind of people are supporting these arrangements and what it takes for
the victims to be there.

Of course, the movie has (very small, almost invisible) drawbacks, like
some lines in a wrong language (english instead of french) and some
Rambo - stuff, but the overall impression is simple: a strong
recommendation!

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455 out of 624 people found the following review useful:

Surprising original exciting action movie

I saw this movie tonight at the sneak preview and I was completely
surprised and blown away. I went to see this movie with no
expectations. In the beginning it seems that it was going to be an easy
to watch movie, but after a short time it turned into a high-speed
action movie. I found the story original and so did my friends. At some
times I found it hard to watch, because of the drug abuse and violence.
To know that these practices still occur also gave me a horrible
feeling. I was completely taken away by this movie. At some points it
was very very quiet in the cinema, because of the excitement, you
wonder what is going to happen next. Some moments in the story I found
a bit not convincing, but the rest of the movie makes up to that. Liam
Neeson in one of his best performances. It had good action, a good
story, some humor. There are also some sensitive / sentimental scenes.
There are no plot twists. It is just a story being told. This is one of
those movies which stay in your memory for a while and let you think
about bad things that happen. The movie that had that same effect on me
was Traffic (2000). Personally I think this movie is underrated, but
maybe this is because it is new. I would give it 8/10.

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358 out of 461 people found the following review useful:

brilliantly executed film

First thing to say is, this is a great and fun movie from beginning to
end. If you like the Bourne titles then you will love this movie. The
fighting style and the way things get done is similar to Matt Damon's
character and it doesn't get old and is interesting and great to watch
throughout the whole film.

The movie has a similar plot to other action thrillers, but even though
you may know the outcome, it is the journey that counts in this movie.
It is the way he does what he does, the way that he fights and
overcomes problems that draws you into the movie and makes this movie
so great to watch.

Liam Neeson is such a great cast for the main character, he delivers an
outstanding performance. I love to see an actor that can portray
themself in anyway, a good guy or a bad guy and in this film he fights
for his daughter and he will not stop for anything. You love to watch
him seek revenge and feel for him the whole time, maybe just because
its Liam Neeson, can you help yourself from loving this guy? He is such
a great actor and shows himself as a badass with charm.

Great, great , greatness i loved this movie so much and had great fun
watching it. If you love the bourne titles you must see this movie. All
i can say is its so much fun to watch it, love it and go check it out.

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337 out of 434 people found the following review useful:

perfect high speed action

Just saw the movie in the sneak preview. First of all this movie will
get a lot of those people who will whine about everything that is not
realistic really (If you are one of those, you'll have a lot to whine
about). But if you can just enjoy a movie as its intended to be and you
appreciate some action this movie is near perfect. The main character
is so pure and non complex. Finally an action movie that doesn't try to
give some oddities to the characters to make them more interesting but
just straightforward high speed action .

Watching this movie was a great experience and I was surprised that I
could enjoy an action movie this much. My tip: sit down, enjoy the ride
and don't moan about imperfections.

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229 out of 305 people found the following review useful:

It doesn't get much better.

A no nonsense, kick the crap out of everyone who gets in your way
action movie. Liam Neeson's character is the angry love child of
Bourne,Bond and all the other pretenders put together. If I was asked
to cast the movie I guess he wouldn't have been my first choice but
having seen it I can't think of anyone else I'd rather have in the
role. The fight choreography is bone crunchingly good. This is one kick
ass flick and one I will definitely buy on DVD. There's little doubt
who the bad guys are and they get a very satisfactory smack in the
mouth - when they aren't being shot or electrocuted. This was made by
people who like the genre and know how to get an action movie from A to
Z. I can't help but giggle at those reviews that mention plot and
probability in this kind of movie. What kind of movie did they think
they were going to see?

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302 out of 456 people found the following review useful:

A thrilling movie and Neeson at his best !

Gone to see Liam Neeson, I've just seen a great movie. Much action,
some American humour (you Americans don't take it too serious, and
that's just as pleasant taht way !), a Liam Neeson at the top of his
art and as a background a very hard subject that makes you think about
it (procuring). I don't know how the critics are reacting in USA, but
in France they are vilifying this movie. So, whatever your American
critics are saying, just do as usual : don't listen to them ! And enjoy
this ninety-minutes show. Regarding Liam Neeson... Well, I am a huge
fan, thus I can't be unbiased. Yet, I found his interpretation very
convincing, he is still the same : one of the best actors ever, along
with... Hum, I'll stop there, don't want to be controversial. Have a
good sitting ! By the way, do excuse me for any mistake I could've
made, as I'm French (I imagine you could've guessed it, since we are
the lucky ones who are the first to be able to see this film !).

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292 out of 474 people found the following review useful:

Step aside Bond and Bourne... Niam is better !

Yes, its only an action movie; Yes, the script has more holes than the
victims of the main character! Yes, Neeson's rampage in Paris is very
implausible; Yes, its not Oscar material... no great acting.

Still... its a very good movie. I gave it a solid 8. I left the movie
feel very satisfied... its that kind of movie that is fun and thrilling
and brainless at the same time. Doesn't get tiresome. When its
outrageous its funny... when the action gets going you feel right in it
all.

When you finish seeing the movie you do wonder why Bond and Bourne
aren't as macho or mean. Niam's character Bryan("B" letter too) beats
up baddies way better and he looks more scary and real somehow than
those other pansy agents.

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157 out of 243 people found the following review useful:

very good popcorn flick, could've been even better

I went with very few expectations, despite being a fan of Neeson and
Besson. I came out pleasantly surprised. The film is very much in the
Bourne trilogy mold - Neeson's character is a been-there-seen-it-all
former CIA agent who knows all the tricks and is also a dab hand at
dispatching henchmen quickly and effectively.

Another reviewer (while giving the movie 1/10) noted all the clichés in
the movie. That is true, pretty much everyone is a composite of
previous action movie stock characters. The acting is pretty wooden at
times, and Neeson's American accent (as usual) doesn't overly impress.

I say above "could've been even better" and sadly it does seem like
this was an opportunity missed to make a movie that would challenge
Bourne. Sadly it falls short there. The action is excellent, Neeson is
a very believable tough guy, though the audience I watched it with
laughed towards the end when his character takes on almost-superhuman
powers.

The film offers a very brief glimpse into the world of sex traffickers
but you get the sense that Neeson's character doesn't care about any of
these women except his daughter. I think in the end that saves the
movie - Neeson doesn't try to save the world, he only wants to save one
person and will do pretty much anything to achieve that.

Highly recommended, but don't expect any daring social commentary, just
sit back and enjoy, while wondering why Liam Neeson has never tried his
hand at any role of this sort before.